Vanity Metric: The Ruin of Humankind

September 6, 2016

by Morgan Weiler

Do you lie awake, haunted by the lack of likes your most recent morning coffee selfie garnered? Trust me, you’re not alone. The amount of likes (and lack of) are literally ruining humankind. Okay maybe not literally, but I’m just waiting for the statistic to come out.

Recently, I attended the FargoConnect marketing and technology conference. With emoji-filled selfie stations, scrumptiously packed lunches, and a gaggle of fellow marketing nerds, I knew I was in the right place.

Within the land of marketing nerdom appeared a knight in shining armor. His name…. was Scott Stratten. This man bun-baring, Canadian comedy-spewing, social media superstar is known as the President of UnMarketing.

His comedic timing proved spot on, as he explained exactly what it means to be on social media these days.

And that includes…

Likes, likes, likes.

When you are on Instagram as a business, is this all you’re trying to gain?

When you post a video of office shenanigans on Facebook, would you rather it go viral then up your brand recognition?

We need help, my friends.

Scott Stratten is onto something when he says that we, as social media hounds and addicts, should not “chase the vanity metric.”

While he isn’t talking about chasing tubes of lipstick or bottles of hair gel, he is talking about the epidemic taking over social media, and we need to stop caring so much about follower growth and web-likes and start with the in-person love. After all, affinity to your brand is what matters most.